Puno and Puno Law Offices

Corporate and Commercial

We are a leading firm in the area of corporate practice, and our holistic and practical approach in this field creates value for both our domestic clients as well as foreign clients that put a premium on the business relationships they established with their local partners. Our corporate practice group boasts of experts in foreign investments laws, doing business issues, establishing all forms of business presence, corporate governance and regulatory compliance, structuring investments to comply with ownership and regulatory restrictions and address tax issues, special registrations in relation to incentives and other benefits from different government agencies, formation of joint ventures, including the preparation and negotiation of joint venture agreements, shareholders’ agreements, investment agreements, management and technical consultancy and other agreements.

PunoLaw advises clients across various industries who continue to rely on our experience and expertise in the field of corporate practice for their continuing operations in the Philippines, and this has allowed us to maintain our position as a top-tier firm in this practice for the last several years. Our corporate practice group collaborates seamlessly with our other practice groups to address, in the most efficient and pragmatic manner, our clients’ various needs.

Family Law

We have an extensive practice in Family Law involving dissolution of marriage, dissolution of common and conjugal property regimes, legal separation, paternity and filiation, adoption, custody of minors, support, and special proceedings for guardianship,  probate of will, judicial and extra-judicial settlement of estate, and appointment of executor or administrator of an estate.

Our reputation in the practice of family law has been built on a careful balance of empathy and strong legal expertise. Whether the client needs assistance in amicable methods of settlement in matters legally permitted to be subjects of compromise or vigorous negotiation and assertive representation in highly adversarial cases, we are equipped with experience and innovative solutions to protect our client’s interests

Immigration

PunoLaw’s immigration lawyers represent foreign staff and expatriates of multinational companies, local conglomerates and foreign businessmen doing business in the Philippines in their applications with the Philippine Bureau of Immigration, Department of Justice, Department of Labor and Employment, Philippine Export Processing Zone (PEZA) and other agencies for alien employment permits, special working permits, provisional work permits, and applicable visas. PunoLaw also assists local clients on dual citizenship issues before government agencies including courts and administrative agencies handling petitions for the acquisition of Philippine citizenship. PunoLaw also provides legal representation to foreign clients before government agencies relating to the enforcement of immigration and labor laws. PunoLaw’s immigration practice includes, among others:

1. Processing applications for the following visas:
   1. Temporary visitor [9(a)]
   2. Pre-arranged employee [9(g)]
   3. Quota and non-quota immigrant [13 & 13(a)-(g)]
   4. Special non-immigrant [47(a)(2)]
   5. Special investor resident [EO 226]
   6. Special resident retiree
2. Processing of applications for the following permits to work:
   1. Alien employment permit
   2. Special work permit
   3. Provisional work Permit
3. Processing applications for the following permits and certificates:
   1. Alien certificate of registration identity card (ACR-I-Card)
   2. Re-entry permit
   3. Special return certificate
   4. Emigration clearance certificate and similar documents
   5. Recognition as Filipino citizens

Intellectual Property

PunoLaw assists and advises clients in the application, registration and maintenance of trademarks, patents and copyrights. We also represent and advise clients for inter-partes and cancellation proceedings. PunoLaw also assists and represents clients in infringement cases, both administrative and criminal, and in intellectual property rights protection and enforcement initiatives and actions. PunoLaw has acted for clients in the preparation and enforcement of distribution agreements, software license agreements, and equipment supply agreements. PunoLaw also advises and assists clients with agreements which involve technology transfer arrangements and voluntary licensing agreements including advice and assistance with respect to mandatory and prohibited provisions.

Labor and Employment

PunoLaw’s labor and employment group has extensive experience in labor law matters. PunoLaw has successfully defended corporate clients against employee claims. Among the labor cases we handled before the National Labor Relations Commission, the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court are:

• Illegal and constructive dismissal cases
• Money claims
• Illegal suspensions
• Compliance with Occupational Health and Safety Standards
• Other cases involving labor standards and labor relations

Philippine labor law can be challenging given the state policy to give protection to labor and to construe doubts in favor of the employee. PunoLaw proactively identifies risks and develops solutions to help its clients avoid litigation in their regular operations or in the context of a merger, acquisition, or other commercial transactions. We also provide advice and assistance on the following:

• Legal audits of the Philippine Department of Labor and Employment
• General advice on day-to-day employment related issues
• Comprehensive labor due diligence for corporate acquisitions
• Employment contracts, employee policies, code of discipline, and other employee-related manuals
• Restructuring, reorganization, down-sizing, right-sizing, and employee transfers
• Outsourcing
• Employee discipline and termination
• Enforcement of non-compete and confidentiality agreements
• Pensions and other employee benefits
• Discrimination and harassment claims
• Union negotiations

Many labor and employment matters touch on other areas of law, such as tax, data privacy, and intellectual property. When these issues arise, we also have lawyers in these other areas available to provide efficient and specialized service.

PunoLaw’s clientele includes notable companies in various industries including but not limited to real estate, business process outsourcing, banking, international airlines, and business conglomerates.

Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution

General Commercial Litigation

PunoLaw’s litigators provide tactical and practical solutions to commercial disputes. With decades of experience in trial practice, our lead litigators have achieved major victories which include favorable judgments rendered by the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Numerous high stakes commercial litigation have also been successfully concluded by our team of litigators in various tiers of the judiciary.

Handling complex commercial litigation for so many years has enriched the practice of our litigation group. It has enabled our litigators to draw from their varied experiences and skills in developing a robust strategy that is aligned with the business interests of our clients.

Our litigators are deeply dedicated and passionate about their work, whether the task is to mount a challenge against a party, or to defend a client.

The litigation team’s expertise in trial techniques is not only borne out of years of trial practice and mastery of substantive and procedural rules but is also the result of the guidance and tutelage of its Founding Partner, Justice Ricardo C. Puno, Sr. Before he founded the firm in 1984, Justice Puno had a long and distinguished career in public service spanning 22 years in the judiciary, legislative and executive branches of the government. Most of those years were spent in the judiciary as a judge in the Court of First Instance and then as a Justice of the Court of Appeals.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

PunoLaw’s litigation practice has expanded throughout the years. The practice is no longer confined to the established norms of the Philippine judicial and quasi-judicial systems but has covered other modes of dispute resolution which have gone beyond the boundaries of the usual rules of procedure of judicial courts and quasi-judicial agencies. When the Supreme Court declared in a case decided in 1998 that “arbitration is the wave of the future,” PunoLaw was already riding a wave of disputes requiring final resolution through arbitration. Since then, the dispute resolution practice of PunoLaw has grown steadily.

Our arbitration team has comprehensive experience in representing clients in several dispute resolutions involving international and domestic arbitrations under United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Arbitration Rules, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Rules of Arbitration, Hong Kong Arbitration Rules and construction arbitration under Construction Industry Arbitration Commission (CIAC) Rules, including the dispute resolution procedure under the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market Rules.

Criminal Litigation

The criminal litigation practice of PunoLaw is just as active and spirited as the other areas of litigation practice. Our litigators’ fearless representation, whether as private prosecutor or defense counsel, has brought about effective results in criminal actions involving entrapment, inquest, arrests, search and seizure of property, preliminary investigation, bail hearing, quashing of information, suspension of arraignment, private prosecution, defending the accused, plea bargaining and appeals to the Philippine Department of Justice.

Administrative Proceedings and Special Proceedings

Our team of litigators is heavily involved in representing clients before various government agencies exercising quasi-judicial functions.

We have appeared for hearings before, and successfully obtained favorable resolutions from, quasi-judicial bodies in the Philippines such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, Energy Regulatory Commission, Civil Aeronautics Board, Department of Justice, Land Registration Administration, Office of the Ombudsman, Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, Office of the President, Commission on Elections, Laguna Lake Development Authority, National Water Resources Board, among others.

Real Estate Development

PunoLaw has acted as counsel to several real estate developers, and has handled several large and complex deals in the real estate market over the last several years. Our real estate practice has guided clients work through joint venture arrangements, land asset acquisitions, and project debt and equity structures in order to achieve their project development milestones in a timely manner, responsive to the needs of the market. At least four of the largest conglomerates in the Philippines trust our real estate practice in guiding them through their regulatory and transactional issues. Our experts in the field are widely respected and complement their legal skills with a deep understanding and awareness of the industry.

Focus

Our key focus includes:

Regulatory Advice

We provide guidance on legal and regulatory issues, and assist our clients find practical solutions. We work with our tax and other practice groups to ensure our advice to clients (including real estate investment trusts) fully addresses their business and operational concerns.

Real Estate Purchase and Acquisitions

We have acted as counsel in some of the largest real estate purchases for our institutional clients.  Our interdisciplinary approach to these transactions has continued to yield benefits for our clients several years after deal close.  Our long experience in this practice area and deep knowledge of the market ensures that our clients are able to meet their objectives in any kind of purchase or acquisition.

Project Structuring and Development

We have been key to putting together different structures that address our clients’ objectives in every project.  We assist in every stage of project development – due diligence review, debt and equity structuring, contract preparation and negotiations with joint venture partners and other counterparties, project implementation including assistance with the projects’ permitting requirements.  We apply the same approach of involving our experts in other practice areas like tax, M&A, and competition law, to real estate project development.  Our clients have successfully launched luxury condominiums, shopping centers, first-class subdivisions, office buildings, hotels and resorts.

Representative Transactions 

Our deals / transactions include the following:

• Counsel for Rockwell Land Corporation (“Rockwell”) in relation to Rockwell’s first real estate development in the Laguna area through a joint venture with Carmelray Property Holdings, Inc. and San Ramon Holdings, Inc., and members of the Yulo family. The joint venture is developing a 90.6-hectare property located in Carmeltown, Canlubang, Calamba, Laguna, Philippines into a mixed-use development with residential, commercial and retail components.
• Counsel for GT Capital Holdings, Inc. (“GTCAP”) in connection with the acquisition of over 700 hectares of land in Cavite, Philippines from Property Company of Friends, Inc. and the development, construction, management and sale of said property as a commercial and residential township
• Counsel for Arthaland Corporation for the purchase, development, construction, management and sale of real estate assets in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City, Philippines and Sta. Rosa, Laguna, Philippines
• Counsel for Rockwell in connection with the first joint venture between Rockwell and Mitsui Fudosan (Asia) Pte. Ltd. (“MFA”) for the development, construction and sale of real estate projects in the Philippines through the joint venture company, Rockwell MFA Corporation
• Counsel for Rockwell in connection with the real estate acquisition and structuring and development of The Proscenium luxury condominium mixed-use development located in Makati City, Philippines
• Counsel for Federal Land, Inc. for the purchase, development, construction, management and sale of real estate assets in Bonifacio Global City, Pasig City, Cavite Province and Cebu City
• Counsel for Rockwell in its acquisition of the 9.7-hectare Tribeca project, composed of clusters of residential and commercial condominiums along the South Luzon Expressway in Muntinlupa City, Philippines
• Counsel for Rockwell in connection with its first real estate development in the Pampanga area through a joint venture with T.G.N Realty Corporation. The joint venture will develop 36,489-square meter property located in Angeles City, Pampanga, Philippines into a mixed-use development with residential, commercial, and retail components
• Counsel for Rockwell in connection with a joint venture that will develop a 28,531-square meter property located in Cebu City, Philippines into residential condominiums, and retail and office developments
• Counsel for the Century Properties Group of companies (“CPG”) in connection with its joint venture with Mitsubishi Corp. (“MC”) for the development of a low-cost housing project offering 3,000 housing units in Tanza, Cavite, Philippines
• Counsel for CPG in connection with its joint venture with MC for the development of US$100 Million Forbes Media Tower in the Philippines